Twenty One Pilots :: Dayglow
American Family Insurance Amphitheater, Milwaukee WI
September 23, 2025
Shot and Written by Kelsie Lee Barlow
On September 23rd, at the American Family Amphitheater on the Summerfest grounds, Twenty One Pilots put on an unforgettable show with The Clancy Tour: Breach with support from Dayglow. Fans from near and far dressed up in costumes inspired by Twenty One Pilots' lore, including Bishops, Torchbearers, Clancy’s, Ned’s, Banditos, and more. As a fan of the band for 10+ years myself, I also participated in the fun by duct-taping my pants with red strips, another iconic look that fans have adopted from music videos over the years.
Starting at 7:45, Dayglow (aka Sloane Struble) took the stage with a fun set of indie-rock music and good vibes. They played some of their most popular hits, such as “Can I Call You Tonight?” and “Listerine”. Struble was accompanied on stage by some of his best friends, including drummer Brady Knippa, bassist Peyton Harrington, and keyboardist Norrie Swofford. The Twenty One Pilots fanbase is dedicated to supporting the openers, and showed up knowing the words to many of the songs Dayglow was playing, making sure to sing, dance, and have fun prior to the headliner taking the stage. During the set, Sloane complimented a fan on the barricade who was wearing the iconic Wisconsin cheesehead with the word “Breach” written across both sides. He also praised Milwaukee, hyping up the crowd by expressing his love for our city. Leaving the stage, it was clear that Dayglow made fans feel energized, excited, and ready for the rest of the night, while carrying the great memories of his performance as well.
At 8:43 pm, the speakers blasted a small section of the song “Midwest Indigo” where frontman Tyler Joseph sings, “What’s your ETA?”, and the crowd loudly responded with “Two Minutes!” This signaled to everyone that the band would take the stage in exactly two minutes, and the energy in the amphitheater was electric. At 8:45 sharp, the lights went out, and the initial backing track that precedes their opening song, “Overcompensate”, started to play. Red lights started moving about the stage, and drummer Josh Dun made his way to the drumset wearing a mask with glowing red eyes. The drum beat for the song started, and anticipation grew for Tyler to enter the stage. Before we knew it, Tyler lept over the piano on the stage and made a grand entrance for the song. The excitement in the venue was so palpable that I swear I could feel the ground shake beneath my feet. The next two songs played were off their new album Breach, which dropped on September 12th. Though the album is less than a month old, fans showed up knowing every single word and singing them proudly along with the band. Photographing Twenty One Pilots after growing up with their music was such a surreal experience, and getting to see, feel, and hear the music that close was a great reminder of the impact their music has across generations, and the variety of people who have all been brought together by the story Tyler and Josh have been writing since the 2015 album Blurryface.
For the remainder of the show, I watched from the nosebleeds, but no matter where you watch a Twenty One Pilots show, you’ll have a great and unique experience. The band is known for using the entirety of the space they perform in, not just the stage. Early into the set, the band played a video that their media team puts together before every show. It showcased fans dressed up in their homemade outfits, and singing a portion of their song “We Don’t Believe What’s On TV” in order to introduce the song and get fans involved. Tyler headed out into the crowd during “Routines In The Night”, and high-fived fans on his way to the B-Stage.
Due to the layout of the amphitheater, Josh and Tyler were split on separate B-stages that were opposite each other, and proceeded to play some deep cuts such as “Message Man”, “Pet Cheetah”, and “Polarize”. Josh led the journey back to the mainstage as Torchbearer, carrying the torch and flag labeled ‘Milwaukee’ back to the stage. A curtain at the back of the stage fell to reveal the set of Dema, a circular city with 5 cylindrical towers that is meant to represent struggles with mental health. This was the perfect backdrop for their return to the mainstage and performance of their song “Jumpsuit”.
Twenty One Pilots continued to create a memorable experience for fans by playing more favorites like “Heavydirtysoul”, their new song “Garbage”, and the demo version of their song “Doubt”, which went viral on TikTok earlier this year. Continuing their engagement with fans, Tyler walked around once again for fan-favorite “Ride” and brought a young fan onstage to help finish singing the song. Following that, they played “Drum Show”, the second single released from Breach, and at the end of the song, a group of fans around the back of the amphitheater held up a drum-set bolted to a platform, and Josh played a drum solo while being physically supported by fans. This is a tradition that the band has had for many years and is commonly known by fans as “drum island”. This brought us to the final stretch of the show, and I’m sure it felt emotional to many fans, including myself.
Tyler and Josh wowed the crowd with their performance of “City Walls”, which is the first track off their new album, and the song that wraps up the telling of the story of Clancy and his battle with the Bishops. Many adult fans have been following this story since they were teenagers, and after years of theorizing and listening for hours, seeing the song that gives us the ending live made for a truly emotional experience. “Guns For Hands” off their album Vessel was also played and seamlessly transitioned into one of their biggest songs, “Stressed Out”. This concert ended the same way all of their shows do: with the song “Trees”. This song allows Tyler and Josh to be in the crowd one last time when fans in the pit hold them up along with two bass drums, and they drum together for a grand finale. This instance has always brought tears to my eyes, and in a moment of collective effervescence, it felt like everyone in the venue was at home, happy, and united against our daily struggles to enjoy a night of meaningful music and pure bliss.
In the past 10 years, including this one, I have been to a total of five Twenty One Pilots concerts, and I have not once been disappointed. For a band of two, the theatrics and full use of space are incomparable to any show I’ve ever seen. I love how with each tour and album, the shows have become more grandiose and memorable. During the show, Tyler expressed his love for Milwaukee and believes that it has one of the best music scenes in the world. Though the band will be taking a break after this tour, this comment left me with no doubt that they will one day return and rock Milwaukee once again. With this tour wrapping up the 10-year-long story, I’m left excited and curious to see what direction they go next when we see their return. Whatever they do, millions of fans will enthusiastically be ready to listen and cheer them on, and keep the music alive. As Tyler and Josh always say before exiting the stage, “We are Twenty One Pilots, and so are you”.
DAYGLOW
For fans of Dayglow, rejoice! as their new album Superbloom dropped in June with much critical acclaim. With hit after hit, be sure to check out Dayglow here.
